Satellite Link Restored, Drones Fly Past 400km/h
Ukraine's defence minister said the country's access to Starlink is stable again after days of throttled connectivity.
By Jonathan Hoffmann ·
Yevhenii Khmara said on Saturday that Ukraine's Starlink access had returned to normal, ending several days of restricted speeds on the satellite network. The defence minister added that drones could again operate at more than 400km/h.
Khmara said the restored capability mattered directly to troops in the field. "This result is above all important for our front, for our soldiers, for the operation of drones, for logistics and for communications," he said.
Kyiv's military relies on Starlink and its military counterpart Starshield to fly drones and run operations. Ukrainian officials accused US President Donald Trump last week of directing Starlink owner Elon Musk to impose limits. Under those caps, drones reportedly dropped their link once they travelled at 161km/h or faster. Trump denied issuing any such instruction, then said Musk had "put it back". Musk has said Starshield is under US military control and has suggested the Pentagon could explain the recent interference.
The dispute unfolded against a wider argument between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky over Kyiv's strikes on Russian oil refineries. Zelensky said the US also threatened to pull intelligence sharing if those attacks stopped. Trump denied that claim. He has waived some sanctions on Russia and agreed to import Russian diesel for the US market, drawing criticism from Ukraine and its European allies. Trump says refinery strikes push global prices higher. Kyiv says they cut Moscow's main war revenue. Russia's defence ministry said on Saturday that its air defences downed 616 Ukrainian fixed-wing drones. In the past 24 hours, Ukrainian authorities said they hit a missile component manufacturer, a chemical plant and an aircraft at a military airfield inside Russia.
